What's New in WebGPU (Chrome 147-148)

François Beaufort

Published: April 22, 2026

WGSL linear_indexing extension

The WGSL language extension linear_indexing lets you use the following built-in values in workgroups:

global_invocation_index: The current invocation's linear position within the total compute shader grid. A u32 input value calculated based on the global_invocation_id, workgroup_size, and num_workgroups.
workgroup_index: The linear position of the current workgroup within the overall compute shader grid. A u32 input value where all invocations within the same workgroup share the same index.

The extension addresses manual index calculation from 3D coordinates, which is a repetitive, error-prone process. By moving this logic into the language itself, WGSL improves code readability and eliminates common repetitive calculations.

This language extension can be feature-detected using navigator.gpu.wgslLanguageFeatures. See the following example and the intent to ship.

if (!navigator.gpu.wgslLanguageFeatures.has("linear_indexing")) {
  throw new Error(`WGSL global_invocation_index and workgroup_index built-in values are not available`);
}

const adapter = await navigator.gpu.requestAdapter();
const device = await adapter.requestDevice();

const shaderModule = device.createShaderModule({ code: `
  requires linear_indexing;

  override x : u32;
  override y : u32;
  override z : u32;

  @compute @workgroup_size(x, y, z)
  fn main(@builtin(workgroup_index) wg_index : u32,
          @builtin(global_invocation_index) g_index : u32) {

  // The workgroup_index built-in value is equivalent to:
  // (@builtin(workgroup_id).x +
  // (@builtin(workgroup_id).y * @builtin(num_workgroups).x) +
  // (@builtin(workgroup_id).z * @builtin(num_workgroups).x * @builtin(num_workgroups).y))

  // The global_invocation_index built-in value is equivalent to:
  // (@builtin(global_invocation_id).x +
  // (@builtin(global_invocation_id).y * x * @builtin(num_workgroups).x) +
  // (@builtin(global_invocation_id).z * x * @builtin(num_workgroups).x * y * @builtin(num_workgroups).y))
  }`,
});

WebGPU on Linux NVIDIA

Following the earlier rollout of WebGPU on Linux, support is expanding to include modern NVIDIA drivers (2024-05) on Wayland. See issue 442791440.

Dawn updates

The wgpu::FeatureName::AdapterPropertiesDRM, only available on Vulkan, lets you query Linux DRM information about the adapter. See Dawn CL 299575.

This covers only some of the key highlights. Check out the exhaustive list of commits.